| Today marks the 10th year of my weekly Flash! articles. To celebrate, I’m re-releasing this article on goal streaking with a few updates and a fresh story. Thank you for your continued rooting and readership! _______________________________________ In the 1970s, an odd trend emerged on college campuses called “streaking,” where people ran naked through public areas to shock and amuse others. Then in 2011, the messaging app Snapchat repurposed the term “streak” to gamify the act of exchanging messages multiple days in a row. Snapchat refers to this uninterrupted chain as a “Snapstreak.” The app tracks these streaks and encourages users to continue their daily exchanges. And now there is a new kind of streaking: Goal Streaking – a continuous series of one activity in pursuit of a goal. Goal Steaking examples:
On January 1, 2019, Michigander Bugsy Sailor challenged himself to capture a photograph of the sunrise on Lake Superior every morning for one year. His goal? To connect with nature and be more present. His early morning ritual soon amassed a following in town and around the country. To date, hundreds of people have purchased pictures and/or pledged to watch more sunrises. Bugsy is now in his seventh year of photographing morning sunrises. He revealed recently, “How much joy everyone else gets from it has really kept me going the last couple of years.” Personally, I have two streaks that continue to impact my life: (1) My Flossing Streak (2) My Writing Streak I sent the very first Flash! article to 11 people, including my husband and my mom. Today, over 50,000 people receive it. When the Streak Goes on Strike Like Bugsy, my streak once went on strike as well. I missed publishing a Flash! article one week due to mismanaging my health and my time. I, too, was frustrated with myself, but instead of giving up, I recommitted to my goal… with a twist. I now incorporate scheduled writing breaks on major holiday weeks each year. Action! From the goalstreaks.com website: “The best way to achieve your goals is by taking regular, meaningful steps towards them.” Finding a mentor is a meaningful step. Mentors create what is known as “evaluation apprehension” – an aspirational form of peer pressure. Knowing someone we respect is rooting for us and regularly asking about our progress compels us to take action. In the world of goals, action is the game-changer. This past decade has taught me, however, that perfect action is not required, just continuously being in action. As long as we stay on the field, mentors (and mentees!) of all shapes and sizes will stand on the sidelines and fill the stadium. © 2025. Ann Tardy and MentorLead. www.mentorlead.com. All Rights Reserved. PS. Tired of looking for Flash! in your email? Follow me on LinkedIn and get notified when I publish a new Flash! each Thursday (except on major holidays!) |